I am looking for an inexpensive shortwave receiver. Preferably not one of the small Chinese models.
Thanks
Steve
Thanks
Steve
Shortwave Receiver
- Thread starter shirsch101
- Start date
“Inexpensive shortwave receiver” and “preferably not one of the small Chinese models” are generally incompatible within the same request. That being said, there are some cheap ($300 USD and below) made in China shortwave receivers that have gotten decent reviews here on Radio Reference. A search for “shortwave receiver” reveals a good sampling of those threads.
Depending on what your budget is, there are non-Chinese manufactured shortwave receivers available on the used market. If I were going to buy a shortwave receiver today, I would save my pennies until I could afford a Drake R8 receiver or similar. But they do run more than $300 USD on the used market. Even a used ham radio transceiver that has continuous HF receive coverage might be a possibility as long as you don’t transmit unless you have the appropriate FCC ham license.
Sooooooo… what is your budget in the “inexpensive” shortwave receiver world?
Blackswan73
Active Member
I second the Drake R8. It was designed and manufactured in Miamisburg Ohio. A top line receiver that still commands around $400-$600
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I am looking to spend $300 or so. It doesn’t matter if the receiver is new or used in good condition. I was looking at a Radio Shack DX-394 but not sure if it is more of a watch toy than receiver. I have read about LowBander’s modifications and wonder if they really have any effect. Any suggestions would be appreciated
Thanks
Steve
Thanks
Steve
Blackswan73
Active Member
I had a DX 394 “B” model, which was supposed to be the best version. I hated it! The crosstalk and intermod distortion was awful. However, that being said, that was 30+ years ago when the 394 first came out. At that time the shortwave international bands were incredibly crowded, with powerful stations adjacent to weaker stations. Today most of the powerhouse stations either no longer exist or else no longer beam their broadcasts to North America. So in today’s sw bands, you might be quite satisfied with a 394. Myself, in a $300 price bracket, I would consider a Tecsun 501, 2200, 8800, or a used Icom 718, Kenwood 2000, or a Grundig Satellit 800. And don’t overlook the diminutive Belka. There is a used one in the classified section for $150. A very surprising receiver that rivals most desktop and top line portables
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I am just getting into it. Looking for a change from the basic police fire air monitoring. I am retired and looking for something new
"basic police fire air monitoring." - That would be a Scanner and what scanner depends on where you live.
For a Basic Good Shortwave Portable the PL880 and PL990 seem to be good. That would let you get into SW Broadcast and Utilities (Utilities = Non Broadcast. Like USAF Frequencies, Civil Aircraft also etc
For a Basic Good Shortwave Portable the PL880 and PL990 seem to be good. That would let you get into SW Broadcast and Utilities (Utilities = Non Broadcast. Like USAF Frequencies, Civil Aircraft also etc
Have 4 BlueTail P25 scanners, 1 Uniden BCD536HP scanner and a few Uniden analog scanners so I am good with scanners. Just looking for a base shortwave
ka3jjz
Wiki Admin Emeritus
Sadly the days of a tabletop HF receiver are gone. The alternative is to buy an used ham transceiver, many of which have general coverage HF built in. Another, if you have a good laptop, is to get a Software Defined Radio (SDR). Airspy and SDRPlay products run pretty much neck and neck in terms of popularity
Mike
Mike
Blackswan73
Active Member
Actually Tecsun just released a new desktop, the S-2200. But in actuality it is not much more than a 501/x in a S-2000 case.
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The new version is S-2200X and it is pretty interseting an updated version of the S-2200
Dan Robinson Reviews the New Tecsun S-2200X Portable Receiver
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor and supporter, Dan Robinson, who shares the following review: Tecsun Delivers The S-2200X – New Life For A 16-Year-Old Cabinet Design by Dan Robinson Note: Pl…
swling.com
ka3jjz
Wiki Admin Emeritus
I had forgotten about the S2200X- and the reviews on this radio are darn good. The SYNC mode still doesn't work right - they lost it after they came out with the PL660 portable - but it's quite respectable in many other ways. Do a Google search
Mike
Mike
HF is about it unless you want to get into satellites. A used HF ham rig will do. Something with a waterfall display helps locate signals. Or, maybe try a LAN-IQ. Am enjoying mine.
Check out the Afedri LAN-IQ SDR: a new stand-alone touch screen SDR
Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dan Robinson, who shares the following video from Fernando Duarte highlighting the new Alfredi LAN-IQ SDR: I can’t wait to check out Fenu’s full …
swling.com
The Realistic DX-394 is anything but a 'watch toy'. I use one nightly, to monitor the HF ham bands (including CW) as well as the SW BC bands. Does it have some issues? Yeah. It can overload. There can be some crosstalk if I'm listening to 20M and some splattermaster is banging away 20 kHz up the band. Usually the RF Gain solves most of it.
The radio is sensitive and selective enough for SW BC listening and HF ham listening.
Caveat: depending on where you live, yes, you will get overload. I don't. I live in a relatively low signals area. Some DX-394 users get plenty just off the whip. Others rig up a preselector, or use a tunable loop antenna. I do well with just a 25 ft indoor, second story wire.
RE: 'Chinese' radios. There is nothing wrong with most Chinese radios. China can make good products. My Chinese made Grundig G2 that I bought nearly 10 years ago still works well. Same with my Chinese made Sangeans from the 2000's and 2010's. Chances are high that the phone or computer you typed your post on was made in China. So don't knock a radio just because it's made in China. Sangean's 909X2 is made in China, but Sangean is a Taiwanese company. If you can afford the $220~ price, a Sangean 909X2 might be the way to go. Most guys who have them seem to really like them. You can use an external antenna with no overload. Great on SSB. Sangean is a good company.
There are probably more good radios at lower price points today than there ever has been in the SW hobby. So you have a lot of choices, and most of them (Tecsun, XHDATA, Sangean ATS405, etc.) won't break the bank.
I don’t have a link handy, but check out a video on YouTube by Andre his SWL Channel. The video, “The Qodosen DX-286 back story”, has a part where Andre recounts an interview with one of the people who produced the DX-286. He explains what happened over the years and how the portable SW radio market got to be how it is today.
Great. It helps knowing your budget. In my opinion, from personal experience as an SWL for about 60 years, used tabletop radios like the Yaesu FRG-7, Kenwood R-2000 and the Yaesu FRG-100 were excellent performers. I owned all of them. As far as a portable SW radio the Panasonic RF-2200 was the best portable I ever owned and still have one in use. I had the DX-394 years ago and found it a disappointment, but it was a used unit. One caveat with buying used radios, especially older ones like the aforementioned is running the risk of winding up with a faulty one.
You may want to check eham.net for reviews general coverage receivers: https://www.eham.net/reviews/view-category?id=8
One excellent performer, if you don't mind using a computer is the AirSpyHF+Discovery, an SDR (Software Defined Radio) that covers all of the shortwave bands and even AM and some VHF. I've had one for a few years now and it's one of the best general coverage receivers I've ever owned. It's a completely different experience since you use your computer's screen to display the portion of the radio spectrum being received.
Airspy.US – Your USA source for quality SDR products!
Hope this helps and good luck in finding your radio.
I had mine cleaned up and refurbed and honestly it's the one that I listen to the most. Great sound and reception on all bands. Listening to it right now!
I love my Grundigs and Tecsuns too so this might just be a phase for me lol.
It would be nice if a waterfall display would be on these SW receivers. Could be a good update for sales.
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